Truss



Nov 24, 193

I w. SILVERSTEIN TRUSS Filed April 19, 1935 FIG. 3

INVENTOR.

v H MZL'IAM LJILVL'RSTEIN 7 ATTORNEYS Patented Nov. 24, 1936 UNITED STAEfi P TENT FFIQE 3 Claims.

This invention relates to trusses such as are used for the support and/or treatment of rupture or hernia. In certain of its aspects the present application is a continuation in part of application Serial No. 639,872 filed October 2'7, 1932.

The primary object of the invention is to provide a truss which is exceedingly simple of construction, inexpensive to manufacture, extremely easy to apply and adjust to the individual requirements of the wearer, which is very effective in its action, and which does not impair the comfort of the wearer or unduly restrict his freedom of movement.

With this and other objects in view, which will appear as the description proceeds, the invention in one of its aspects consists in providing a truss having two pressure distributing pads mounted for slidable movement relatively to each other and being provided with means to lock the pads automatically in any desired positions to suit individual requirements. Each truss pad is, in the illustrative embodiment of the invention, of normally fiat, elongated trapezoidal shape and of firm but pliable, flexible material, and is adapted by reason of its structure to distribute the desired amount of pressure around the rupture, instead of concentrating the pressure at the rupture.

Referring briefly to the drawing, in which I have shown an illustrative embodiment of the invention:

Figure 1 is a view in front elevation of the middle of the human body illustrating the truss as applied;

Figure 2 is a rear elevation thereof, showing the simplicity of the fastening means in the rear of the body;

Figure 3 is an enlarged view of the left hand portion of Figure 1 showing one of the pads (partly broken away) and its associated parts in front elevation; and

Figure 4 is an enlarged cross-section taken on line 4-4 of Figure 3 and looking in the direction of the arrows.

Referring more specifically to the drawing and particularly to- Figure 1 thereof, the reference numerals l and 2 designate the two pressure distributing pads which constitute parts of my new and improved truss construction. These pads are of a structure more specifically illustrated in Figures 3 and 4 and preferably have anelongated substantially trapezoidal front elevation for reasons which will hereinafter appear. Each pad. consists. of a core or filler 3 which may ad' vantageously be of sponge rubber or other selfsustaining yieldable material, a backing 4 of a flexible or malleable material such as a metal or alloy of the nature of German, silver or aluminum, .and a fabric covering 5 encompassing the 1 entire pad. The metal backing 4 may be unit-ed to the sponge rubber core 3 by means of a flexible cement such as rubber. The pad is normally in a flat condition and its structure adapts it to be shaped readily to conform closely to the parts of the body to which it is to be applied. Attention is directed to Figure 1 wherein the pads are shown applied to the body.

Secured to each pad in any desired manner as by means of the conventional form of staples 6 is a bracket l. The bracket is fashioned out of a thin metal blank and is provided with the three horizontal apertures or slots 8, 9, and it]. The apertures or slots 8 and 10 may be formed by simply bending the upper and lower ends of the blank onto the body of the blank. The staple 6 serves to secure not only the bracket to the pad but also the bent-over portion of the blank to the body portion. The central aperture or slot 9 which has the form of a channel open at one end is adapted to receive the rod ll, the aperture having a width slightly greater than the diameter of the rod and a depth about twice the diameter of the rod. The rod is normally forced to the outer end of the channel 9 by means of the two coil springs i2 and I3, each of which has its intermediate or spring portion l4 wound with a slight degree of looseness about the rod on one side of the bracket and its ends anchored in the apertures 8 and H] in any desired manner. The two springs may be fashioned from .a single length of thin resilient wire as is indicated in Figure 3 of the drawing.

The rod H is adapted to be disposed horizontally in relation to the body of the wearer, the pads being mounted on the rod 6 forpivotal movement about the rod and for slidable adjustment along the rod relative to each other, the two pads being, disposed with their longest diagonals at an angle relative to each other. The springs I2 and i3 serve not only to urge the rod l l to the outer closed end of the channel 9 but also to lock the pads against slidable movement at any desired positions along the rod. When the rod l I is near the outer end of the channel, there is sufiicient tolerance between the rod and the coils of the springs to permit the pads being moved freely along the rod, but when pressure is applied to force the rod toward the center of the channel the coils tighten about the rod to such an extent as to prevent movement of the pads. When the truss is secured to the body of the wearer in the manner to be hereinafter set forth, the pressure of the body against the pads is suihcient to force the rod toward the center of the channels 9 and thus lock the pads against movement on the rods.

The rod H terminates in the bifurcated ends l5 and iii to which are attached the ends of the main supporting strap or tape i l which is adapted to encircle the body of the wearer just above the hips as clearly shown in Figures 1 and 2. The attaching means may take the form of an eye l8 pivotally connected to the bifurcated end of the rod, so that the angle of the strap H is automatically adjustable to conform with the requirements of the particular wearer. The strap I1 is shown as consisting of two portions, each attached to an end of the rod H and connectable by means of the buckle IE, but it is thought to be obvious that the strap may be in one continuous piece, one end being permanently secured to an end of the rod l l and the other end of the strap being detachably connected by means of a buckle to the other end of the rod.

In order to hold the pads effectively against the area of the body which requires the support of the truss, each pad is provided with one or more additional straps. In the illustrative embodiment one additional strap 20 for each pad is shown. One end of the strap 20 is secured as by means of a snap fastener 2| to the upper end of the pad, the intermediate portion of the strap is adapted to encircle the leg of the wearer (see Figure 2) and the opposite end is adapted to be detachably connected to the pad by means of the buckle 22. As shown the buckle may be secured to the pad by means of the bracket 1, one arm of the buckle being housed within the aperture in. The use of the snap fastener 2| obviates the necessity of adjusting the strap 20 each time the truss is put on.

From the foregoing description, the manner of application of the truss to the body, its adjustment and the manner in which the various parts of the truss cooperate in distributing firm but yieldable pressure on the surfaces about the rupture and reenforcing the natural muscle support are thought to be obvious and no extended explanation of its operation is considered necessary. Suffice it to state that the structure and arrangement of the pads enables them to be positioned and applied to the portion of the body needing the support of the truss and rendersthe pad readily adaptable to be bent from their normally fiat condition to conform closely to the parts of the body to which they are applied and to distribute the pressure about the rupture to best advantage, thus eliminating the localized pressure which was considered a necessary evil in prior structures and which had a tendency to exaggerate the rupture. It is to be particularly noted that the strap I! supports the truss from the hips of the wearer and also cooperates with the two sets of additional straps 20 in holding the pads against the desired area of the wearers body. The springs I2 and I3 serve not only to lock the pads against movement when they are in position but also to supply the pressure for holding the pads firmly but yieldably against the areas to which they are applied, without impairing the comfort of the wearer or unduly restricting his bodily movements. By merely loosening the strap H by means of the buckle 19 the wearer may at any time unlock the pads so that they can be adjusted.

The foregoing specification and description include the essential and distinctive thought of my invention, but it is to be distinctly understood that the same may be modified in various ways and/or combined with various other details without affecting the peculiar results obtained and without departing from the spirit of the invention or the scope of the appended claims, in which I intend to claim all the patentable novelty inherent in my invention.

I claim:

1. In a truss, the subcombination of a rod, a pressure distributing pad and means for mounting said pad on said rod for pivotal and sliding movement, said means consisting of a bracket attached to the pad and having a channel for receiving the rod, said channel having a width substantially equal to the diameter of the rod and a depth substantially greater than the diameter of the rod, and a spring, the ends of which are anchored to the pad and the intermediate portion of which is wound about the rod, whereby when the rod is forced toward one end of the channel the pad is locked against pivotal and sliding movement on the rod.

2. As an article of manufacture, a truss comprising a rod adapted to be disposed horizontally n in relation to the body of the wearer of the truss, two pressure distributing pads mounted on the rod for pivotal movement about the rod and for slidable adjustment along said rod relative to each other, each of said pads having a substantially fiat body-contacting inner surface and being constructed of pliable flexible material so that it can readily be made to conform to the part of the body to which it is applied, means consisting of a strap attached to both ends of the rod and having an intermediate portion for encircling the wearers body and holding the russ in position, means consisting of straps for holding the pads against the parts of the body to which they are applied and in conformity therewith, and means to lock each of the pads against movement on the rod, said means consisting of a coil spring for each pad wound about said rod and having its ends anchored in the corresponding pad.

3. As an article of manufacture, a truss comprising a rod adapted to be disposed horizontally in relation to the body of the wearer of the truss, two pressure distributing pads mounted on said rod for pivotal movement about the rod and for slidable adjustment along said rod relative to each other, each of said pads having a substantially fiat body-contacting inner surface and being constructed of pliable flexible material so that it can readily be made to conform to the part of the body to which it is applied, said pads having an elongated substantially trapezoidal front elevation and being disposed with their largest diagonals at an angle relative to each other, means consisting of straps for fastening the truss to the body and for holding the pads against the parts of the body to which they are applied and in conformity therewith, and means to lock each of the pads against movement on the rod, said means consisting of a coil spring for each pad wound about said rod and having its ends anchored in the corresponding pad.

WILLIAM I. SILVERSTEIN. 

